


Hot coffee in a cold burrow

by marmotts



Category: The Queen's Gambit (TV)
Genre: Age Difference, Bittersweet, Dialogue Heavy, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, One Shot, Phone Calls & Telephones, Post-Canon, Post-Series, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:53:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28108119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marmotts/pseuds/marmotts
Summary: It's been half a year since she returned from Moscow, and Beth finally calls Benny in New York.
Relationships: Beth Harmon/Benny Watts
Comments: 12
Kudos: 107





	Hot coffee in a cold burrow

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sarjear](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarjear/gifts).



> Hot coffee is literally what I need right now.

“Benny?”

A tired groan from a New York flat; a flat, tired voice, “Oh. It's you, Beth.”

She pauses, as if waiting for his move. She would rather not start, as her strategies had all failed in her mind.

“I wanted to tell you something. I’m sorry that I didn’t call... sooner.”

“Are you kidding me? Is that all?”

Beth feels her chest tighten. “Obviously not.”

“So you couldn’t find the time to call me in the last six months, or you just didn't feel the need?”

“You don’t know where I’ve been in the last six months, Benny.”

“So, tell me.” A beat. “No, let me guess. Last week, I saw this girl at a bar in Brooklyn, who looked just like you. And it would be just like you to come here to get drunk, without seeing me at all.”

Beth wonders if he was actually admitting what he had been doing, beyond accusing her. He didn’t take care of himself when she knew him; and neither did she.

“Benny, I do miss you,” she confesses. “It’s not like I haven’t been missing you.”

He doesn’t answer. Her words are meaningless blows to him.

He glances at a scarf that had been tied lovingly and thoughtlessly onto his coat stand, a loose bow. He had always assumed it would untie itself eventually, and fall to the floor, and then be retrieved by Beth, at some point after Paris.

But he’s seeing it now, tied there, every bit as loving as before. Instead of making him keen and hopeful, now it depresses him. 

Beth starts pacing, sighing. “I’ve been home, but I’m not... I’m dealing with some heavy shit that I thought you should know about.”

“You know, I couldn’t care less about your problems and I can't help you. I thought that after winning you would’ve changed, but you're still the same person.”

She scoffs, tearing up finally. “Listen to what I’m telling you.”

 _Silence._ “All right, Beth. I’m sorry.”

“Because I was waiting for you to come here, for a call, or a letter, or _something—”_

“I could say the same to you. You were always welcome here.”

“You told me never to call you again.”

“Well, I didn’t mean it. And that all changed.”

Beth whispers, “No kidding. Good night, Benny.” 

Beth hung up the phone, and started writing, where she had total control over the blank lines. She wrote in charming, curly script;

_Benny,_

_I can’t travel now (in addition, I am in a great deal of pain) but if I could, I’d visit you for hot coffee in your cold burrow. I’d wear your wool socks and kimono again. Most importantly, we could play._

_I’m sharpening the sword, always always always, and redecorating my old room. I’m going to have a baby. I found out a while ago, but I wasn’t sure if I should tell you, or whether you’d want to know._

_Do what you want._

_Just know that I'm grateful forever, for everything you did for me, and I remember our time underground so fondly. Thank you. I thought you deserved to know that._

_— Beth_

Some time later, Benny re-reads the note, and exhales a long, deep breath. His bags are in the car already. He takes Beth's scarf from its lovely spot, pulls it around his neck, and departs to Lexington to be with her.

**Author's Note:**

> _This is a gift for Sarjear, because I've read their work "when the game is over" many times with relish, and it is what inspired me to write for this pairing._
> 
> If you happen to be writing _Queen's Gambit_ fics, or if you're just curious and kind, please make friends with me. I haven't been able to talk about the show with anybody else, or the ideas I have for stories, things like that.
> 
> Also, please contact me if you'd like to work out a timeline for _Queen's_ together. I think a lot of it is open to interpretation.
> 
> Disclaimer: This is the first thing I wrote all year, but I'm writing more already. I'm pretty excited about it.


End file.
